Flying splice unwind stand



Nov.. 27, 1962 G. w. KARR FLYING sPLIcE uNwINn STAND 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 7, 1959 Nov. 27, 1962 G. w. KARR 3,065,923

` FLY-ING SPLICE UNWIND STAND Filed Jan. '7, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Gera/d W Karr Nov. 27, 1962 G. w. KARR 3,065,923

FLYING sPLIcE UNWIND STAND Fiied Jan. 7, 1959 5 sheets-sheet s .1122.12 21m" Gera/a' W Karr Nov 279 Filed Jan. 7, 1959 G' W- KARR FLYING SPLICE UNWIND STAND 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Nov. 27, 1962 G. w. KARR 3,065,923 FLYING SPLICE UNwIND STAND Filed Jan. 7, 1959 l 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 l l Gg/ l Karr United States Patent 3,065,923 FLYING SPLICE UNWIND STAND Gerald W. Karr, Beloit, Wis., assignor to Beloit Eastern Corporation, Downingtown, Pa., a corporation of Dela- Ware Fired Jan. 7, 1959, ser. No. 785,483 s craims. (el. 24a-53.3)

The present invention relates to machines for unwinding rolls of paper or like web material, and more particularly relates to a machine for providing a continuous endless supply of traveling web material from successive parent rolls by splicing the lead end of a fresh roll to the web from an expiring unwinding roll without stopping the unwinding operation.

In unwinding parent rolls of paper or the like, it is advantageous and achieves a saving of time and expense, if operations do not have to be stopped when a parent roll becomes empty and a new roll is started. Conside'able difficulties and disadvantages have been encountered in attempting to continuously unwind large parent rolls of paper. that the unwinding roll be reversed or rotated to provide access for supplying a second parent roll in order to attempt to splice the web material without stopping the unwinding operation.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved machine and method for continuously unwinding a succession of large parent rolls of Web material with a min- 4 imum of difficulty and avoiding disadvantages encountered with the devices heretofore provided.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved unwinding machine capable of providing a flying splice to joint the lead end of a roll of-Web material to an unwinding web, in which very large and heavy rolls can be accommodated with a minimum of handling of the rolls, and with improved reliability and simplicity of operation.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved flying splice unwind mechanism for continuously unwinding succeeding rolls of web material wherein the web material may be delivered from the rolls in a variety of directions without interfering with the operation of changing rolls, as fresh full rolls are supplied.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved mechanism for automatically forming a flying splice and transferring a moving Web from one unwinding roll to another, and improved mechanism for gripping and transporting the rolls, and to provide improved mechanism for forming the splice and cutting the web from an exhausted roll after a splice has been made.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved mechanism for transferring unwinding rolls of web material and controlling the speed of the rolls in a flying splice unwind mechanism.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent with the teachings of the principles of the invention in connection with the disclosure of the preferred embodiments in the specification, claims and drawings, in which: V

FIGURE l is an end elevational View of a'mechanism embodying the principles of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along line II-II of FIGURE l, and illustrating the construction of the end of a core for supporting an unwinding roll; j

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along line III-III of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view illustrating the arrangement at the lead end of the web material on a roll for forming the splice and separating the lead end from the roll;

Devices heretofore provided have often required g ice FIGURE 5 is an end elevational view of the ying splice unwind mechanism of FIGURE l, illustrating an unwinding roll in a primary station as the roll begins to get empty;

FIGURE 6 is an end elevational View similar to FIG- URE 5 illustrating the unwinding roll transferred to a secondary station;

FIGURE 7 is an end elevational view, similar to FIG- URES 5 and 6, illustrating a fresh roll in the machine;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary end elevational view of the elements of FIGURE 7, illustrating their position with the splice being made;

FIGURE 9 is an end elevational view illustrating the cutting of the web from the roll in the secondary station;

FIGURE l() is an end elevational View illustrating an unwinding machine forming another embodiment of the invention with the parts of the machine illustrated just after a splice has been made; and,

FIGURE l1 is an end elevational view of the embodiment of FIGURE l0, illustrating the position of the parts as the parent roll is expiring, and before it is transferred from the primary unwind station to the secsndary unwind station.

As shown on the drawings:

As illustrated in FIGURES l and 3, during normal unwinding operation a parent roll of paper or the like is being unwound and is carried on its core 12, which is supported in a stand including upright supporting arms 13 and .14. Web material 16 is drawn off of the roll 11 in a continual high-speed unwinding operation.

When the parent roll 11 becomes nearly unwound, as illustrated in FIGURE 5, a pair of transfer arms 17 and 18, FIGURE 3, carry the parent roll l1 from a primary station S1 to a secondary station S2. The primary station is defined by the support arms 13 and 14, and the secondary station is defined by the transfer arms 17 and 18, after they have carried the unwinding rcll 11 out of the primary station to permit a fresh roll 21 to be placed in the primary station S1, as shown in FIGURE 7..

The fresh roll 21 is spun or rotated until its pe'ipheal speed is substantially the same as the speed of the taveling web 16, and a web-engaging pressure splice roll 22 then forces the traveling web 16 against the outer surface of the fresh roll 21, and a traveling splice is automatically formed. As soon as a splice 23 is made, a knife 24 cuts the trailing end 26 of the web, feeding from the expiring roll 11, and a continuous web is supplied with the second roll 21 now being unwound.

As to the structure in greater detail, the core for the unwinding rolls is supported and gripped in the primary station and is then released for being transported to the secondary station. It will be recognized that various gripping and supporting arrangements may be employed, and in a preferred embodiment illustrated in the drawings, the cores, as illustrated by the core 12 in FIGURES 1 and 2, have ends 12a which are journalled in a core bearing or hub 27. Since both ends of the cores are identical in construction, only one end need be described in detail. The bearing 27 is provided with a cylindrical support section 31 bounded at its ends by annular flanges 2S and 29. At the outer end of the core 12, is a brake drum 32 which is keyed to the core, such as by key 33, so that braking force will reduce or stop the speed of rotation of the core 12, and the roll carried thereon. A feature of the invention is the provision of a braking arrangement which permits controlling the speed of the roll in the primary station, and also retaining positive control of the speed of rotation at all times, especially during the transfer of the roll from the primary station S1 to the secondary station S2, and at the secondary station.

The upright support arms 13 have an upwardly facing surface 13a which is opened in a direction facing the secondary station S2 so that the core may be readily carried out of the arms 13 and 14 in an arcuate path from the primary station S1 to the secondary station S2. The cores are cradled at the upper end of the support arms 13 and 14 by the support surfaces curved upwardly at the rear edge of the surface. The cores are held on the support surface at the front edge by holding lugs 34 and 36, FIGURE 3, which are pivotally supported on the arms 13 and 14. The lugs are supported on pivot pins, such as 37, for the lug 34, FIGURE 1. In holding position, the lugs are swung upwardly against the outer surface of the annular flanges 28 and 38 of the hubs 27 and 39 at the ends of the core 12. When the core and roll 11 are to be carried to the secondary station S2, the holding lugs 34 and 36 are swung downwardly to the position illustrated by lug 34 in FIGURE 6.

The lugs are power pivoted by suitable actuating means such as pneumatic or hydraulic cylinders 41 and 42, which are mounted on the support arms 13 and 14, and which operate pistons connected to piston rods 43 and 44, connected to control the pivotal position of the lugs 34 and 36. The lugs may also be mechanically locked in place by self-locking linkages, or may be mechanically operated.

Before a fresh roll is spliced to a traveling web from an emptying roll, the fresh roll is rotated until the peripheral speed approaches the speed of the web for smooth splicing operation. For this purpose, a roll drive shaft 46 connects to the core 12 of the roll through a clutch 47. The clutch has engageable clutch plates 47a and 47h, with plate 47a provided with means for disconnectibly connecting to the end of the core l2. The plate 47a is disconnected when the roll 11 is to be carried to the secondary station S2. The clutch arrangement 47, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, may be of any suitable arrangement, and is not shown in detail. The clutch may be of the kind wherein slippage can occur, so that it may be used to aid in controlling the speed of the roll 11 during normal operation when a web 16 is being unwound thereform. Speed of rotation of the roll of paper is controlled by a brake drum 49 mounted on the main drive shaft 46, and engaged by brake shoes 51 for purposes of reducing the speed of the rotating roll 11. The operation of the brake drum 49 and the clutch 47 will be readily understood and appreciated in considering that to obtain either a uniform or varying controlled speed of travel of the unwinding web 16, as the diameter of the roll 11 decreases, the speed of the drum and revolutions per minute must be controllably changed. This speed is important in controlling the tension on the unwinding web to prevent overtension and tearing and to prevent undertension and wrinkling or loss of control of the web. When the clutch 47 is disconnected from driving the roll 11, and the brake 49 is no longer available to control the speed of the roll, the braking means provided on the transfer arms are in position to take over.

The drive shaft 46 of the roll is driven by belts 52 from a drive motor 53 which are used to accelerate the peripheral speed of roll 21 up to web speed for splicing.

The transfer arms 17 and 18 are mounted on a cross shaft 54 extending across the machine so that they will be pivoted together. The cross shaft 54 is mounted on bases 56 and 57 for the support arms 13 and 14, and bearings 58 and 59 on the bases pivotally support the shaft 54. The shaft is controllably driven, so that the transfer arms 17 and 1S swing between the primary support station S1 and the secondary support station S2, by a gear 61 secured to the shaft 54, and a meshing driving pinion 62 which is driven by a transfer motor 63. The motor 63 or other suitable power drive means is operated to pivot the transfer arms 17 and 18 to the accurate locations for supporting the rolls in the primary and the secondary stations.

Each of the transfer arms carries holding lugs, such as lug 64 on the arm 17. The lug 64 is supported on a pivot pin 67. The lugs are suitably power operated, such as by fluid pressure cylinders 66 and 67, to pivot the lugs between a core holding position and a core release position.

The arms have a support surface, such as 17a for the arm 17, which faces upwardly when the arms are in position to receive the core at the primary station S1. The holding surface 17a curves upwardly and coacts with the holding lug 64 to provide a clamping support for carrying the core with its roll to station S2. When the transfer arm 17 is pivoted upwardly from the.position of FIGURE 1, to the position of FIGURE 5, to grip the core 12, the holding lug 64 is in the core release position. When the transfer arms are in the position to grip the core, the lugs are pivoted against the anges 29 and 68, FIGURE 3, of the hubs at the end of the core. The holding lugs 34 and 36 are then swung to release position, and the transfer arms 17 and 18 are pivoted from the position of FIGURE 5 to the position of FIGURE 6 to carry the roll 11 from position S1 to position S2. The transfer arms are stopped in the position of FIGURE 6 to support the roll 11 while the web 16 continues to unwind.

Returning to the position of FIGURE 5, when the transfer arms are in the transfer position, the braking function is transferred from the brake drum 49 to the brake drums 32 and 69 at the ends of the core 12. Each of the transfer arms 17 and 1S may carry one or more brake shoes, with a shoe 71 on the transfer arm 17 coacting with the brake drum 32. The shoe is carried on a rocker arm 72 supported on a pivot pin 73. The brake shoe 71 is pivoted between braking and release position, and is controllably pressured against the drum 32 by the action of a brake cylinder 74. The brake cylinder contains a piston With a piston rod 76 connected to the brake arm 72. The cylinder is provided with connections, not shown, to admit pressurized hydraulic fluid or gas to control the pressure of the brake shoe and control the tension on the web 16. Thus, when the transfer arms 17 and 18 reach the position of FIGURE 5, pressure is applied to the brake shoes against the drums 32 and 68, and the clutch 47 is disconnected from the core 12.

When the roll 11 is in the secondary station S2, the fresh roll 21 is brought into place and rested on the top of the support arms 13 and 14 with the holding lugs 34 and 36 holding a core 77 of the roll in place. The drive is then engaged with the core 77 and the fresh roll is spun in the direction of the arrow 7S until its peripheral speed approaches the speed of the moving web 16.

An automatic splicing arrangement is provided so that the traveling web 16 may be pressed against the surface of the rotating roll 21 and a splice will automatically be formed. For this purpose, the leading end 79, FIGURE 4, of the roll 21 has a surface 81 covered with an adhesive, preferably of the pressure-sensitive type. To prevent accidental unwinding of the lead end from the roll during handling and during the time it is rotated and brought up to splicing speed, the lead end 79 is temporarily held against the roll by short bits of tape 82, which have weakened areas 82a to permit the lead end to easily tear from the roll by breaking the tape when it adheres to the running surface of the web 16. There are, of course, many variations of this type of splice.

The pressure-engaging splicing roll 22 is carried on pivotal arms, such as 85, and is freely rotatable in bearings on the arms. The arms are pivotally mounted on a floor bracket 83 and are pivoted by operating means, such as a fluid pressure operated cylinder 80. Within the cylinder is a piston connected to a piston rod 86 connected to the arm 85. Admission of pressurized fluid to the cylin- 3 der 80 through fittings, not shown, moves the splicer roll 22 from a non-splicing position, as shown in FIGURE 7, to a splicing position, as shown in FIGURE 8. It will be understood that the arms y85 may be mechanically operated by an electric motor or by other mechanism.

The operator may observe the rotation of the fresh roll 21, and may provide a mark at the end of the roll to indicate the location of the lead end 79 so that the splicer rolls can be brought against the traveling web 16, ahead of the time when the lead end 79 reaches the roll 22 to insure a good splicing pressure. As soon as the lead end 79 passes up under the splicer roll, the adhesive area will adhere to the inner surface 16a of the traveling web 16, and an end to surface splice will automatically be formed.

As illustrated in FIGURE 9, web material 86 will then automatically begin to unwind from the roll 21 and the splice 23 will draw the material along with the web material 16.

Material is guided, as it leaves the unwinding rolls, over a guide roll 87 which is positioned to accommodate the unwinding web from the roll 11 in the secondary station, or from the roll 21 in the primary station. The present transfer arrangement is advantageous in that the material may be lead away in any direction, and, as illustrated in FIGURE l, a guide roll may be positioned at 8S so that material 89 can be lead back up over the roll 11 in the primary station S1. The material can be led away in this and various other directions, and it will not interfere with reloading the machine with a fresh roll or with removing the empty core from the machine.

Returning to FIGURE 9, as soon as the splice is made, the web 16 is separated by the cutting knife 24. The knife is supported on a knife arm 91 suitably pivotally supported at its base such as on a support cross shaft 92 which is mounted on the floor on door brackets 90. The knife arm 91 is power operated such as by a pressure cylinder 93 having a piston slidably located therein connected to a piston rod 94, connected to the arm. At the proper time, Huid is admitted into the end of the cylinder 93 to cause the knife arm to snap to the left, as shown in FIGURE 9, and cut the web-16 leaving the trailing end 26. Pressure is immediately applied to the brake shoe 71 to stop rotation of the roll 11 and prevent continued unwinding of the cut end 97.

The transfer arms 17 and 18 are then dropped downwardly to the position illustrated in FIGURE l, and the holding lug 64 is moved to open position. This releases the core on a conveyor 98 supported on floor brackets 99 and 101 to convey the nearly empty core out of the unwinding machine. This is illustrated in FIGURE l with a core 102 being transported axially out on a conveyor 98 which may be a roller or a belt conveyor.

In continued operation of the machine, as illustrated in FIGURE l, the roll 11 in the primary station S1 is supported on the arms 13 and 14, while a web is being unwound therefrom. Speed control of the roll is achieved by the brake shoes 51 applying a pressure on the brake drum 49, FIGURE 3. When the roll becomes nearly unwound, as illustrated in FIGURE 5, the transfer arms 17 and 18 swing upwardly to grip the core 12 and carry the roll to the secondary station S2 to the position of FIGURE 6. Speed control of the roll is transferred to the operation of the brake shoe 71, as soon as the transfer arms are in the position of FIGURE 5, and at that time, the drive clutch 47 is disconnected from the core so that the roll can be transferred.

A fresh roll 21 is placed in the primary station S1 as illustrated in FIGURE 7. The drive clutch 47 is connected to the core 77 of the roll, and it is rotated until its peripheral speed approaches the speed of the web 16. The pressure splice roll 22 then forces the web 16 against the surface of the roll 21, so that the adhesive area 81 Will cause a flying splice to be formed, breaking the tape strips 82. The trailing end of the web 16 is cut by the knife 24 and the supply of web material will continue,

being unwound from the fresh roll 21. When the fresh r-oll becomes nearly empty, the cycle will be repeated, and a continuous supply of web material will be provided without interruption, and Without the necessity of slowing the machine.

In the embodiment of FIGURES 10 and 1l, the splice roll has been exchanged for a rider roll 106 which functions both to control the speed of travel and hence the tension of the traveling web and to form the splice. The mechanism is illustrated in FIGURE 10 with the expired roll 11 held in the secondary station S2 and the splice 23 having been made. The trailing end 26 has been cut arlid the web material is now feeding off of the fresh roll 2 FIGURE l1 illustrates the mechanism as the fresh roll 21 is becoming expired, and as the transfer arms 17 are gripping the roll before carrying it down to the secondary station S2.

The rider roll 106 is carried at the upper end of support arms 167 which are mounted on the iioor brackets 83. The web 16 is carried over a substantial frictional arc of the surface of the rider roll 106 by the location of a guide roll 111 which draws the web material down to engage a larger arcuate area of the surface of the rider roll 166. The guide roll 111 is freely rotatable and is carried on bracket extensions 1'7a on the arms 107.

Control of the speed of the web being paid out from the parent roll is obtained in the embodiment of FIG- URES l() and l1 by controlling the speed of the rider roll 106. For this purpose, the rider roll is provided with torque applying means in the form of a control brake or clutch. The roll is illustrated with a brake drum 112 which is suitably secured to rotate with the roll. The brake drum 112 is engaged by a brake shoe 113 carried on a brake arm 114. The brake arm is pivoted at 116 on an upper portion 1tt7b of the arm 167. The lower end 117 of the brake arm is connected to a piston rod 119 which has a piston slidably mounted in a fluid cylinder 11S. Pressurized uid is controllably directed to the cylinder through conduits, not shown, to apply a desired pressure to the brake shoe, and control the resistance on the traveling web 16.

This embodiment is particularly well suited to apparatus wherein more uniform and accurate control must be obtained. T his arrangement is especially useful in paper machines where a continuous web of soft paper, such as bool: grade, is unwound. This is preferably wound more loosely, and is, therefore, more difficult to control from the center shaft of the parent roll.

In the position of the elements illustrated in FIGURE 1l, the parent roll 21 is about to be transferred from the primary station S1 to the secondary station S2. The rider roll 166 is next swung away from the parent roll 21, and the roll 21' carried on the transfer arms I7 down to the station S2. The position of the parent roll is controlled by suitable mechanism for swinging the support arms 1&7, and a fluid pressure cylinder 108 is shown having a piston rod 169 connected to the arms 107.

When a fresh roll is placed in the primary station S1, the rider roll 106 is brought against the fresh roll to splice the lead end of the web from the fresh roll to the traveling web from the expiring roll in the secondary station. As soon as the splice is formed, the knife 24 cuts the end of the web from the expiring roll and the supply of web material continues.

It will, of course, be understood that control of the speed of the rider roll 166 may be performed by other control mechanisms, and that brake drums and control brake shoes may be utilized on both ends of the roll.

Thus, it will be seen that I have provided an improved method and mechanisms for successively unwinding parent rolls of web material to supply a continuous length of material, meeting the objectives and advantages hereinbefore set forth. The features of the invention are well adapted to machines for high speed operation with large heavy rolls of material such as paper, and the method is utilized with a minimum of operations. Transfer of the supply of paper web is accomplished from one roll to the other without having to rotate or excessively handle the rolls, and the supply can continue without change in speed.

I have, in the drawings and specification, presented a detailed disclosure of the preferred embodiments of my invention, and it is to be understood that I do not intend to limit the invention to the specific form disclosed, but intend to cover all modifications, changes and alterna tive constructions and methods falling within the scope of the principles taught by my invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. A mechanism for supplying a continuous web of paper or the like from unwinding parent rolls comprising in combination an unwind stand having a pair of spaced upright support arms adapted to support at their upper ends the core of a horizontal rotating parent roll, disconnectible clutch means for driving the parent roll in rotation at a peripheral speed substantially equal to a desirable web supply speed, releasable holding means at the upper end of each of said arms for retaining the core of the roll, a pair of transfer arms at each end of the roll adjacent said support arms and mounted for movement between a primary station defined by said support arms and a secondary station spaced from said primary station, means for driving the transfer arms in a transfer movement between said primary and secondary stations, releasable holding means on said transfer arms for receiving the core of a roll in the primary station and supporting it on the transfer arms to be carried to the secondary station, brake means on at least one of said transfer arms for coacting with the core to control the speed of the roll in the primary station and while it is being transferred to said secondary stataion and in said secondary station, means for accommodating a traveling web unwinding from a roll in said secondary station and positioned to also accommodate a web from a roll in said primary station, a splice roll rotatable on a horizontal axis, means for supporting and carrying said splice roll in a path against a web from a roll in said secondary station and forcing the web against the peripheral surface of a roll in said primary station the lead end of the web having adhesive splice means whereby the end will automatically attach to the traveling surface of the web unwinding from the roll in the secondary station, a traveling knife, and means for supporting and moving said knife in a path to engage the web unwinding from the roll in the secondary station at a location behind the splice whereby a continuous running web will be supplied.

2. A mechanism for unwinding and supplying a continuous web of material or the like from an unwinding parent roll comprising in combination support means for rotatably supporting an unwinding parent roll, a rider roll positioned to have web material drawn from the parent roll threaded over a portion of the surface of the rider roll, a braking means connected to the rider roll for" applying a braking torque thereto whereby the speed of the web will be controlled, support means for supporting a fresh roll, means for driving the fresh roll to bring it to a rotational speed, and means for moving said rider roil in the path to engage the surface of said fresh roll after it has reached said speed and press the web from the parent roll against the fresh roll for forming a running'splice with the leading end of the web on the fresh roll and receiving the web from the fresh roll in speed controlling Contact obtained by controllably operating said braking means and said driving means.

3. vA mechanism for unwinding and supplying a continuous web of paper or the like from an unwinding parent roll comprising rst support means for rotatably supporting an unwinding parent roll, a'rider roll positioned to supportingly accommodate the web from the parent roli, a guide roll positioned to guide the web over a substantial frictional engagement arc of the rider roll, a braking means connected to the rider roll for applying a braking torque thereto whereby the speed of the web will be controlled, second support means for supporting a fresh roll, means for driving the fresh roll to bring it to an operating speed, means for barking the fresh roll in said second support means, and means for moving said rider roll in a path to engage a fresh roll in said second support means and press the web from the parent roll in the first support means against the fresh roll for forming a splice with the leading end of the web on the fresh roll and for receiving the web from the fresh roll in speed controlling frictional engagement.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,550,315 Hammer Aug. v13, 1925 1,747,289 Cornell et al. Feb. 1.8, 1930 2,000,253 Richter May 7, 1935 2,082,373 Wood June l, 1937 2,120,778 Dunlap June 14, 1938 2,165,026 Bernard July 4, 1939 2,190,058 Doyle et al. Feb. 13, 1940 2,389,443 Lyle Nov. 20, 1945 2,486,006 Clem Oct. 25, 1949 2,508,566 Dunton May 23, 1950 2,535,815 Seeger Dec. 26, 1950 2,635,823 Weber et al Apr. 2l, 1953 2,898,056 Triquet Aug. 4, 1959 2,914,267 Means Nov. 24, 1959 2,915,255 Phelps Dec. 1, 1959 2,957,639 Muller Oct. 25, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 20,021 Great Britain of 1914 968,704 Germany Mar. 20, 1958 

